Hi,

Beatiful finish.

I also used automotive varnish with flex agent for my previous kayak. I also thought to use it for my next kayak. The varnishing in paint shop is not that expensive and the surface should be perfect.
But - the stuff does have lower resistance for scratches and such. My kayak has some pretty nasty looking grooves in bottom, much more than those that have been varnished with marine 2-part polyurethane varnish. One paint shop person said the same - he told the automotive varnishes have greater gloss, but much lower abrasion resistance. So he didn't recommend it for a kayak.
My kayak has also automotive paint in wooden surface under varnish. The scratches can easily be seen because the light wood shows through black paint. Shaded epoxy would have been great there as a "primer".

I'm not sure if the lower resistance is a big problem - it's quite common to get scratches to varnish but fiberglass will stop them.

One thing to remember is that the varnish will be softer for long time. It's called a "reflux" or something like that. If I understood correctly it can last longer time with automotive products. Or maybe it's the issue with new environmentally friendly stuff which is compulsory in EU. I guess it's not there yet though...

Toni.

: Just wanted to let you all know the "Nereida" Njord just came out
: of the spray booth. I had it shot with 4 coats of DuPont ChromaPremier
: 72700S three component automotive urethane by Pete Gagne in Berlin, NH.
: According to his distributor, there's a wooden boat builder in VT that
: swears by it. He added a flex agent for better abrasion resistance. I
: dropped it off Wednesday morning and should be bringing it back to the
: shop for final outfitting this afternoon or Friday morning. Pete did a
: fantastic job. So much better than I have ever done before. Even on hard
: to spray areas like the coaming there's not a drip or sag to be seen. The
: gloss is incredible. I am so psyched at how it came out. The price was
: very reasonable. For those looking at having a "perfect" varnish
: job, consider having sprayed professionally.

: I also had Pete spray a fiberglass-covered plywood panel for some destructive
: testing to test the durability of the clear coat. I'll compare it with the
: other finishes I've used before.

: For those that are curious, the Njord is a 18'-4" x 20" wide kayak
: designed by Bjorn Thomasson in Sweden. Even using 3/16" thick genuine
: mahogany, curly maple and walnut the pre-clearcoating weight came it at 39
: pounds. Not too shabby for all hardwoods.

: I'll be building the crate and doing the final outfitting this weekend. It
: ships to Spain next week. I'll post another picture when it's done.

: Dan